Teaching article
Referendum or election: what question is on the ballot?
Compare what people are being asked to decide, using the appropriate Australian official explanations.
Both involve voting, but that shared action can hide an important difference. Look first at what the ballot asks people to decide, then consult the applicable official account of how that decision is made.
Compare the question being decided and the applicable official rules. Voting in both processes does not make the processes interchangeable.
Identify the decision in each question. Check the official terms. Explain why the two examples need different labels.
Compare the question before the counting
Choosing representatives and answering a constitutional referendum question are not the same kind of choice.
Do not generalise one counting rule to every referendum or election.
What is being decided in each case? Compare the question wording without running a complex count.
Resources
- Fair Rule or Random Rule? — Compare proposed rules and explain their practical effects.
Further reading
- Parliamentary Education Office — classroom activities
- Australian Electoral Commission — Democracy Rules
Read next
- Rights and responsibilities in a shared-space scenario
- Can a newcomer use this public-service notice?
- Three levels of government, seen through everyday services
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